What’s Been Happening in Space154

Thursday, September 14, 2017

By Diana Moran

The vision of Space154 became a reality one year ago this month. In the span of twelve months, this dynamic space has welcomed a variety of members of the Seton Hall Community. Our faculty has used the space to further engage students while professional staff members have used it for team building and students have utilized the space to expand their knowledge of coding, development, and design. Below highlights a few examples of how Space154 has inspired creativity and collaboration both on campus and across the world.

During the Fall 2016 semester Dr. Meryl Picard, Assistant Professor in the Department of Occupational Therapy, utilized Space154 in her Wellness and Health Promotion course. As critical thinking, problem-solving, creativity and communication are skills that are fostered throughout the occupational therapy program, Dr. Picard turned to the help of our instructional design team to develop a three session 'concept to product' experience. The experience utilized a variety of tools not found in the confines of a traditional classroom setting encouraging students to think outside the box. During this time students learned design principles and processes to create a health promotion podcast, infographic, handout packet or public service announcement. Additionally, students experimented with 3D printers to produce adaptive equipment for individuals with disabilities. Dr. Picard said, "With its bright colors, technology options and supportive instructional designer, Space154 gave my students a playground to challenge their thinking and create truly unique products."

Based on the collaborative nature of the space, Dr. Jim Daly, Professor of Educational Studies, regularly incorporated Space154 into a Digital Humanities project where his class jointly worked with a group of Ukraine students at Borys Grinchencko Kyiv University. The students utilized Visual Eyes software to create a site to track the number of immigrates from the Ukrainians. With the help of Space154, this project was a valuable learning experience for not just Seton Hall students, but for our new friends in the Ukraine as well.

In the spring of 2017 Dr. Grace May, Associate Professor of Education Studies in the College of Education and Human Services, incorporated Space154 into the Elementary Special Education – Autism and Disabilities class offered to juniors. Dr. May felt the environment helped her convey a lesson in social skills and confidence in a more engaging way. The green wall enabled the students to bring their stories about social skills to life. They grasped the concept of teaching social skills in a more realistic way because they participated in developing a real-life lesson. Dr. May said her students "wrote more thoughtfully and were more engaged in class."

Space154 has also encouraged team-building among the professional staff of Housing and Residence Life. Attendees were able to use the technology available in Space154 and create personally designed coins using the 3D printer. They learned how to use Makerspace software and think like an engineer and designer; all things that are not part of their daily role. According to Cheryl McCloskey, Assistant Director of Housing Operations and Marketing, "Our staff enjoyed the colorful, comfortable setting of Space 154 and now know that such a fantastic, team-oriented space exists on campus!"

To learn more about incorporating Space154 into your curriculum, please contact your Instructional Designer. If you are an administrative department and are interested in hosting a team-building exercise, please contact Renee Cicchino at renee.cicchino@shu.edu.